Takeaway plan gets taken away from new Preston restaurant

Highways bosses at County Hall objected to initial plans for the new eatery by a busy junction, fearing customers picking up food would cause road safety risks.

But now the scheme has been amended after discussions with officers to ensure it serves only meals for consumption on the premises.

The application was for a change of use for the building on the corner of Sharoe Green Lane and Watling Street Road from a financial office to a restaurant/takeaway.

Only two objections were received from neighbours, citing issues such as a lack of parking spaces and the possibility of nuisance from litter, noise, and smell.

But when the plan was considered by LCC’s highways department, an officer said there were no problems with a restaurant, but the use also as a hot food takeaway “does raise some highways safety concerns” because of its location so close to a very busy traffic light junction.

“There is no specific off-road parking spaces identified within the application,” says a report to the city council’s planning department.

“My concern is that if hot food takeaway is permitted, parking on double yellow lines will be inevitable, which will result in the carriageway width (on both roads) being reduced.

“Sharoe Green Lane is served by a regular bus service and is the main road to the hospital used frequently by emergency vehicles to and from the hospital.”

The restaurant also applied for opening hours of 7am to midnight Monday to Saturday, but the council only granted 7am to 11pm.